ePly Event Planning Blog

When planning an in-person or virtual event, attendee engagement should always be top-of-mind. Any activities you plan should be a little bit strategic, moving you closer to the goal for hosting the event in the first place — that said, you want to make them FUN of course!

One easy way to engage your attendees is leaning into any timely holidays or traditions. Since Halloween is right around the corner, we thought we’d brainstorm a few ideas for adding some last-minute fun to an event this month — ideas so easy, it’s spooky:

Planning a successful event takes a lot of forethought. It all starts with nailing down your goals for hosting the event, whether it be to drive a specific number of registrations, fundraise a certain amount, or simply provide an experience for your audience.

You want to kick off any event planning process by thinking about your event from the top down — starting with that goal and then everything you’ll do to accomplish it — so that you can set up your online event registration form and reporting to help you in the long run.

How? 

Speakers are a BIG part of many events — especially conferences. They play into why people register and what attendees will ultimately take back to implement. (A pretty big responsibility.)

That said, you want to leverage your speakers to the best of your ability in order to attract your audience and drive registration rates. To do that, it’s important to ask your speakers for a few key marketing materials. Particularly…

While there are certainly many benefits of hosting a virtual event, the one downside is that they are typically — just by nature alone — less interactive than in-person events.

But that’s not to say they can’t still be interactive! There are many tactics you can try and activities you can incorporate to better engage your online audience. 

Below are just a few ideas… 

Engaging young professionals can be tough, especially when it comes to events. Throw the word ‘networking’ out there, and people seem to run for the hills.

But you know what makes networking a lot less intimidating and a lot more appealing? When there’s an activity to break the ice. (And no, nothing cheesy.) Remember, young professionals want to connect — but you’ll be much more successful at engaging them if you can help them do so in a way that’s going to be fun.

The next time you are planning an event or event activity for young professionals, keep these ideas in mind:

Event planners represent their event and their organization — to vendors, their audience, sponsors, etc. — so whether you’re a beginner or seasoned, in-house or agency, professional development should still be top of mind.

One thing that all event planners should have on hand is a quick bio. You never know when it’ll be needed! If you’re trying to figure out where to start, we’ve got you covered: check out this basic template to follow so you can knock out a professional biography in ten minutes or less. 

What can grab an eight-second attention span? That’s the question you’re really going to have to ask yourself if you want to bring Generation Z to your next event. Speaking as a member of Gen Z myself, I know we are a tough crowd to please.

Between personal insight and some industry research, I’ve compiled three main tips that will give you a little glance into the minds of Gen Z-ers:

When it comes down to it, event planning is a game of details. That’s because there are SO many to keep track of. Between your multiple audiences (attendees, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, staff) and their various needs, plus all of the typical logistics...it’s enough to make any event planner’s head spin!

So, what details in particular tend to trip event planners up the most when onsite prepping for an event or the day-of? Here are seven to keep in mind, whether you are a veteran or are planning your very first event:

If you’re trying to find some simple ways to make a great impression with your event sponsors, look no further! Check out how you can say thank you (without much effort) and keep your sponsors coming back year after year.

There’s a lot to juggle with event planning and sometimes, you just need a refresher. So we have asked a few fellow event planners — what are some of your MUST-KNOW tips and hacks for planning events?

Check them out: